Basehor-Linwood students win county spelling bee

Basehor-Linwood Middle School students swept the top two spots of the Leavenworth County Spelling Bee this weekend, and both students can move on to regional-level competition next month.

BLMS sixth-grader Calder Hollond took first place in the bee on Friday in Leavenworth, and eighth-grader Aly Levinson placed second.

Hollond won by correctly spelling the word “synopsis.”

The two students battled head-to-head for 10 rounds during the conclusion of the contest, said Marilyn Michalls, a retired teacher in the Basehor-Linwood School District who organized the bee for the Leavenworth Area Retired School Personnel Association. The contest began with 38 contestants from around the county, Michalls said.

Hollond and Levinson are now eligible to move on to the Great Bend Tribune Sunflower Spelling Bee in Great Bend on March 12, one of three regional spelling bees in Kansas. The winner of that bee is eligible for the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., in June.

For more on the county spelling bee, check Thursday's print edition of the Sentinel.